Karlos Dansby, Donte Whitner will add flexibility to Browns' D

San Francisco 49ers strong safety Donte Whitner is called for a penalty on the play against Atlanta Falcons running back Steven Jackson during the final regular season game at Candlestick Park. (Kelley L Cox – USA TODAY Sports)

The Cleveland Browns are expected to sign LB Karlos Dansbyand S Donte Whitner soon after free agency officially starts at 4 p.m. In doing so, the Browns address their two biggest needs on the defensive side of the football — holes on the roster created by the Browns in an attempt to upgrade two key positions.

Last season, the Browns finished ninth overall in total defense and ranked eighth in pass defense. But that was under the guidance of head coach Rob Chudzinski and defensive coordinator Ray Horton, both fired after the 2013 season.

The Browns’ defense should be more aggressive under new head coach Mike Pettine and defensive coordinator Jim O’Neil. The unit allowed conversions on 44.7 % of third downs last season. The Browns are expected to blitz more often on passing downs while utilizing more complex coverage schemes. It’s in these areas Dansby and Whitner will help the most.

Dansby was revitalized once he returned to the Arizona Cardinals last season from the Miami Dolphins. He played at near-Pro Bowl caliber. Jackson actually had more tackles than Dansby, but Dansby was a better all-around player.

Dansby was tied for the lead among linebackers with 19 passes deflected. He was also first among inside linebackers with 6.5 sacks.

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The acquisition of Dansby will allow the Browns to be more flexible on defense.

Whereas, the transition from Ward to Whitner doesn’t appear to be nearly as favorable for the Browns. Ward was one of the games top in-the-box safeties. He finished with third among safeties with 112 total tackles. He’s one of the best run defenders at this position in the league.

TJ Ward played 65% of his run snaps within 8 yds of the line of scrimmage, his 20 run stops in such situations led the league

Whitner, aka “Hitner”, can be force against the run, but he’s also better than Ward in coverage.

The Browns may have gotten older with the acquisitions of Dansby (32) and Whitner (28), but the team clearly wants to be more flexible within their new defensive scheme and that is the key component in these transactions.